Public meeting was constructive first step

City officials and all who participated in a “community intervention conversation” last Thursday should be congratulated. They dealt openly with a difficult subject, and did so in a constructive and proactive manner.

City officials and all who participated in a “community intervention conversation” last Thursday should be congratulated. They dealt openly with a difficult subject, and did so in a constructive and proactive manner. The meeting was held in response to recent events in Ferguson, Mo., where unarmed black teen Michael Brown was shot by a white police officer. Much of the conversation focused on ways to improve policing and bolster community and police relations. One of the most concrete and positive outcomes was Wichita Mayor Carl Brewer’s commitment to try to find the money “to man-up every officer with a camera.” More discussions and reforms are needed, but the Thursday meeting was a excellent first step. – Phillip Brownlee